In the bottom of the sixth, Taylor Walls made a costly two-run error to give the Reds the lead. Josh Lowe had a pinch-hit RBI single in the top of the seventh to pull the Rays even at 2.

The Tampa Bay Rays wasted a brilliant start from Ryan Pepiot, blowing a lead late on an uncharacteristic error by Taylor Walls and another rough night for the bullpen in a 6-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds.

Another “L.” Down -400 lettermans. The one and only Stitches has been handicapping baseball, daily, for the Post since 2019. Miraculously, he has finished in the black twice. But wait there’s more. He showed his versatility by winning the Post’s NFL Best Bet crown last year.

In honor of the National Baseball Hall of Fame induction festivities taking place in Cooperstown, New York, each team wore a retro-style hat with a Hall of Fame patch on the side. For Cincinnati and Tampa Bay, they donned their hats on July 26. The Reds' hat was blue was a wishbone "C" larger than what they typically wear.

The managers became close when Cash played for the Red Sox, and they keep trying to one-up each other with pregame hijinks.

Trade Deadline winds are blowing stronger with moves starting to happen around Major League Baseball the past couple of days. For the Reds, the time is ripe for catching a breeze to both stay in the postseason hunt and position themselves for dealing before Thursday.